Sexual Stereotyping: The Advertising Dilemma

In today's New York Times advertising column, Doreen Carvajal highlights a dilemma that has long plagued advertising strategy - stereotyping.

Why are stereotypes so prevalent in advertising? It's a storytelling heuristic. Ads tell a story, but they have a matter of seconds in which to do it. The faster the audience can get up to speed on the backstory, the more time the piece has to share the benefits of the brand being promoted. Stereotypes, by definition, are a culturally-recognized depiction of an iconic character. There's the backstory and the creatives can then go about building a brand message.

That's the good news about stereotypes in advertising.

Problem is - as a society, we should seek to eliminate many of these stereotypes. They don't tell a backstory so much as degradate the group in question and promote misconceptions.

Carvajal reports that the European Parliament recently adopted a position to encourage marketers to be more responsible in their depictions of gender stereotypes. Her piece highlights many of the most agregious examples of stereotyping in advertising and public and government response. Dolce & Gabbana's fantasy rape advert shows just how far the line can be pushed.

Dolce & Gabbana's example seems clear cut - surely depicting rape in an advert designed to build brand image take artistic expression in marketing too far. Other stereotypes are less pronounced - is it wrong to feature thin models in fashion ads? does it promote misconceptions to illustrate a housewife cleaning and cooking?

This article features common gender stereotypes - submissive women in sexually abusive scenes, domesticated women, strong men (the poor guys - it must be tough to be seen as strong, successful, career-driven over and over in advertising) don't get me started on the gender disparity in the sheer number of negative stereotypes for women versus men).

But these are not the only examples of stereotypes in advertising.

Any demographic group can be used as the basis of a stereotype - college kids, jocks, blondes, yuppies, soccer moms... these are all stereotypical profiles that we use in advertising. Many of these are not considered offensive or problematic in terms of continuing negative stereotypes or promoting unhealthy images.

Others represent a concern for individuals and society at large because they promote unhealthy self-images, discrimination, and are just downright rude.

The European Parliament has taken a positive step forward with its action on gender stereotypes.

The LGBT segment faces similar challenges with stereotyping in advertising. We see this with stereotypes of lipstick lesbians, queens, and leathermen.

Commercial Closet provides a stellar collection of stereotyping of gays and lesbians. Its database is complemented with a summary of what makes the use of the stereotype acceptable or not with an Ad Respect Score. Its AdRespect Training Program offers corporate training on how marketers can build campaigns that avoid negative stereotyping - (disclosure: I am on its Academic Advisory Board, and conducted some research on just this issue, but seriously, it's great training). This is training that could benefit the industry as it seeks to be more responsible in the depiction of ALL stereotypical characters.

What can we do as consumers? Make your opinion known. If a brand uses a stereotype inappropriately, don't buy its products. Post comments expressing your views online. Contact the company and make a statement. But don't just accept it and go on about your business - if you do, the agencies won't know that more harm than good can come from stealing a backstory from a stereotype.